Reviews of Picture Books, Easy Readers, Songs, and More!

Tag Archives: folktales

August House, a publishing company based in Atlanta, sent me review copies of several of their latest titles. I don’t always review everything I receive; I am hesitant to recommend any book that I am not fully impressed by. After all, this blog is essentially a labor of love. That said, I liked what I received and decided to promote the items. Last Thursday, I sponsored a giveaway for the book Teaching with Story: Classroom Connections to Storytelling. Only three people have signed up so far, so I encourage you to enter! But this Monday, I wanted to write about two picture books from August House. Both are beautifully illustrated and well-written adapted folktales. And by the way, I have received no money for these reviews or the giveaway.

Author Heather Forest and illustrator Susan Gaber have been friends for twenty-five years and have collaborated on four picture books. When you read The Woman Who Flummoxed the Fairies, you get a sense of this close relationship between text and images. Fairies literally hang off words and fly through the pages.

The fairies are not evil in this Scottish story, but they need to be tricked if the talented bakerwoman is ever to regain her life as a mother and wife. Jealous that they are deprived of her fine cakes, the fairies plot to kidnap the woman and keep her as their own personal baker. This woman is no one’s fool, however, and she manages to fool the fairies into releasing her, but not without promises of future goodies. I would recommend this story to children who love fairies, as well as fans of folklore. Parents or educators looking for books featuring strong female characters would also do well to check out this title. Finally, a story where Mom is the hero!

Christmas is coming and what better way to celebrate than to read a traditional tale featuring talking Saint Nicholas cookies. Van Amsterdam, a baker in Albanytown, works hard to develop a excellent reputation and then, not uncommonly, proceeds to rest on his laurels and cut corners. An old woman (possibly a witch) notices this decline in quality and chides him for being greedy. Soon, he is unable to bake anything at all and his costumers flee. Van Amsterdam is forced to rebuild his business, but this time he is generous instead of stingy. Thus, the American idea of baker’s dozen (13 instead of 12) was born.

I originally thought this story was a bit harsh, but my 5-year-old son really likes the book and asked me to read it several times. Of course, he loves the gorgeous pictures of baked goods, but I think he is also moved by the message of the importance of hard work and charitable behavior. Thank you again to August House, as well as Teach Mentor Texts and Unleashing Readers. Happy Reading!

Few, if any, folktales are as well-known or as easy to tell as The Three Little Pigs. The story probably originated in England, but it is difficult to date. It is so deeply entrenched in popular culture that nearly every English speaker knows the basic plot, including many very small children. It is therefore the perfect story for authors to play with and adapt to their own whims. And play they do! The idea for this 10 for 10 list came about when I was on Twitter plugging The True Story of the Three Little Pigs by Jon Scieszka, a very funny story told from the wolf’s perspective that I used to regularly read aloud to elementary school students as a public librarian. Carrie Gelson asked me if I had ever read The Three Ninja Pigs by Corey Rosen Schwartz. I had not, but I was intrigued. I already knew of a handful of versions of the The Three Little Pigs; how many more good ones were out there?

My husband’s drawing of a pig

I was very impressed by what I found. A number of very talented authors and illustrators have put their spin on this timeless tale in remarkable ways, adding their own brands of humor and whimsy. While these are not technically my favorite picture books, this is the most fun I have had yet working on a topic for this blog. My children have also immersed themselves in their own research, reenacting the various stories, drawing out their own versions and pouring over each and every one of the texts.

The Three Little Pigs story as illustrated by my 5-year-old son

Instead of reviewing each book in detail, I decided to let the books speak for themselves, with a bit of added information. So without further ado, here is the story of:

“One mornin’ dere mama done give ’em some food And tell ’em some news dat don’ make ’em feel good. ‘It’s time dat you boys find you own place to stay; I t’ink dat you better start lookin’ today.” (Three Little Cajun Pigs by Mike Artell is a regional twist on the tale, featuring an alligator instead of a wolf. Ages 4+)

“‘The first horrid little pig came across a big pile of straw. ‘This straw is PERFECT for me to build my house,’ he thought.”
(The Three Horrid Little Pigs by Liz Pichon – This twisted tale features naughty pigs and a helpful wolf. Ages 3+)

“Can you believe it? I mean who in his right mind would build a house of straw?”
(The True Story of the Three Little Pigs by Jon Scieszka – In this book, the wolf attempts to prove his innocence in the case of the murdered pigs. Ages 5+)

“The second little pig met a man with a load of sticks. ‘I’ve got it,’ said the little pig. ‘I’ll buy those sticks and build a house.’ ‘I’d think twice about that,’ said the man.”
(The Three Little Pigs by James Marshall is a straightforward, but entertaining version of the tale. Ages 2+)

“The third little tamale ran until she came to the desert. She saw cactus bristling with thorns. ‘Cactus will make a strong house. The thorns will protect me,’ the third little tamale said.”
(The Three Little Tamales by Eric A. Kimmel is an appetizing story in which the pigs are replaced by tamales. Ages 3+)

“Now, there was an evil wolf who lived in the woods nearby. One day he came to the house of the first little pig and said, ‘Little pig, little pig, let me come in.'”
(The Three Little Pigs: An Architectural Tale by Steven Guarnaccia – This book includes architectural wonders such as Gehry House, the Glass House and Le Corbusier. Ages 4+)

“‘SCRAM!’ shouted the pig. ‘Not by the hairs of my chinny chin chin will I let a WOLF in!’ “
(Pichon)

“‘Then I’ll wiggle my rump with a bump, bump, bump and smash your house!’ Big-bottomed Boar wiggled his bottom and bumped it against [the] house.”
(The Three Little Gators by Helen Ketteman is a hilarious story about three alligators in an east Texas swamp and my son’s favorite title of the bunch. Ages 3+)

“The wolf chased Pig One to his brother’s and hollered, ‘Hey, Pigs, Let me in!’ Pig Two yelled, ‘Retreat! Or you’ll suffer defeat by the hair of my chinny-chin chin.’ One puff and the wolf blew the door down. Pig Two did his best flying kick. But, Whoosh, the wolf dodged and the pig’s foot got lodged. ‘We’ve got to get out of here quick!'”
(The Three Ninja Pigs by Corey Rosen Schwartz – This book is a winner at my house; instead of being victims, these pigs fight against the oppressive wolf. Ages 4+)

“So I went to the next house. The guy was the First and Second Little Pigs’ brother. He must have been the brains of the family. He had built his house of bricks. I knocked on the brick house. No answer. I called,”
(Scieszka)

“Little gators, let me in. I smell three tender gator skins. Chasing you has made me thinner. I need three little gators for my dinner.”
(Ketteman)

“‘No, no, no,’ said the three little wolves, ‘By the hair on our chinny-chin-chins, we will not let you in, not for all the tea leaves in our china teapot!'”
(The Three Little Wolves and the Big Bad Pig by Eugene Trivizas is another twisted tale with three good wolves and a really bad pig. Ages 4+)

“So he huffed, and he puffed, and he puffed, and he huffed, but he couldn’t budge the house of stone and concrete.”
(Guarnaccia)

“‘I’ll try another approach,’ muttered the wolf.”
(Marshall)

“The wolf launched himself down the chimney, screeching, ‘Here I come, piggies! You’ll soon be sausages!’ ‘No, we won’t wolfie,’ Serafina cried as the wolf slammed into the red-hot griddle. ‘You’ll soon be a WOLFFLE.’ The sizzling wolf staggered from the waffle iron. But before he could catch his breath, the pigs hosed him to the floor with a blast of maple syrup. Then they smothered him in butter, fogged him from head to toe with powdered sugar, and finished him off with a final squirt of syrup.”
(The Three Little Pigs by Steven Kellogg – This book is my personal favorite; it tells the story straight, but with plenty of juicy details. Ages 4+)

“And they all lived happily ever aft”
(The Three Pigs by David Wiesner – This Caldecott-winner does not exactly tell the story of the Three Little Pigs. It tells the story of the three pigs escaping from the Three Little Pigs book and having a series of adventures in other books. My daughter is a big fan of this title. Ages 4+)